Firefox Fights for You. We keep your data safe, never sold

- Firefox (but fixed with settings that are hidden from the user for some reason)

- IceCat, Waterfox, Pale Moon, etc.

- Ungoogled Chromium, Iridium, Qutebrowser, etc.

Mozilla's actions (Cliqz spyware integration, ads in the browser, Google analytics in the browser, locked enabled telemetry, etc.) show that their "commitment" to user privacy is just marketing.

edit: I feel like I should footnote this with the observation that Firefox is at the lowest marketshare it's ever been, and continues to shed users. It currently only exists so to be used as a defense in future antitrust actions against Google.

That being said, as much as I've been unimpressed with Mozilla's decisions over the last half-decade, I don't really see the issue with putting an ad on the new tab page, given that they claim it wasn't targeted and didn't use any user data.

That is not my definition of explicitly signing up for their services.

Unless, of course, I explicitly instruct the browser to connect there, which is unlikely, because I don't want anything to do with them or with their services.

If it is enabled by default, then they are doing it wrong.

Yes. I hate the idea of any built-in browser integration with proprietary services.

1. I don't want recommendations, I didn't ask for recommendations. Having it as a feature that can be enabled for pocket-users might be defensible, opt-out isn't.

2. Even if they're somehow keeping your full browser history on your machine for processing (which is an irrelevant point anyway since it's often synced with your Firefox account anyway), the point is they're collecting data on your personal preferences. The raw data isn't the point, the generated metadata representing a personal profile of you is. It's the processing, regardless of where it takes place, that is objectionable in itself. Doing that processing at all in any form is the antithesis of what Mozilla claims they stand for in this article.

The ways a business can make money online are A) partnerships, B) advertising, C) goods/services, D) subscriptions, or E) community. The last two are dwarfed by the first three, which depend on advertising. Even if you're a B2B, you still need marketing to get new clients, which almost invariably includes some kind of advertising.

So the majority of websites people visit are still paid for with some form of marketing. It may be indirect, such as by affiliate, partnership, selling of private data, etc, or it may be direct, such as with advertisements and spam/newsletters. The user is still going to pay for it, one way or another. If they're not paying via a subscription or donation, they're paying through their use as a marketing target. (And often, via both!)